Scottish Rugby (formerly known as the Scottish Football Union) was founded in 1873 following a meeting between eight clubs in Glasgow.

Based at Edinburgh’s BT Murrayfield Stadium, the governing body develops and funds programmes to help grow the game at club and school level to encourage more players, both male and female, to get into rugby.

And it isn’t just in the home nation where Scottish Rugby is helping promote the game either. The body now works with organisations across the globe to promote the Scottish Rugby brand overseas, which is seeing more fans than ever before follow rugby in Scotland.

Dominic McKay, COO, explains: “We aim to do whatever it takes to grow the game and help it flourish in a manner that fits our values. We also manage Scotland's international rugby teams at every age group level and own and run the country’s two professional clubs, Edinburgh Rugby and Glasgow Warriors.

“We, in many respects, are the national flag carriers for Scotland as our teams are travelling to play most weeks of the year, be that Glasgow Warriors, Edinburgh Rugby, Scotland, Scotland 7s or Scotland Women as they compete on the European and World stage.

“Scottish rugby sides have been playing overseas since the 19th century from the first Scotland away matches against England in 1872 and Ireland in Belfast in 1877. We have been exporting our brand ever since!”

One of the key aims of Scottish Rugby is to present a positive vision of Scotland through the sport and this aim has been boosted by the excellent performances of both its domestic and nation sides in recent years. This has helped drive overseas sales of merchandise, raise brand awareness and secure sponsorships.

As far as McKay is concerned, this is an excellent example of how using the Scottish brand can help organisations export their products and services overseas. He adds: “Our rise to 5th in the World Rankings has generated additional interest and this can be seen in areas such as shirt sales which have risen by 20% over the past four years.

“Television coverage of the 2017 RBS 6 Nations matches featuring Scotland was also transmitted to 181 territories worldwide reaching an audience of 23.2million, while the recent Autumn Test series was broadcast to countries as diverse as Argentina, Singapore, Nigeria, UAE and New Zealand.

“We were also fully involved in the development of World Rugby’s new global season and negotiated the return of Scotland to playing summer test-match series against the best teams in the southern hemisphere from 2020.

“We have more than 2,100 Scotland Supporters Club members from 22 countries all around the world, a 61% increase on last year.”

So, after a stellar year both on the pitch and off it, what next for Scottish Rugby? McKay said: “Globalising our brand to attract overseas investment and growing our fan base have always been critical to our business objectives.

“Rugby is a global sport and we are the forefront of its global development. We have recently spent time strengthening ties in the US, Japan and Singapore markets. The inclusion of South African teams in the Guinness PRO14 league has taken Glasgow Warriors and Edinburgh Rugby into a brand new market this season alone.

“The 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan offers an unprecedented opportunity to take the Scottish Rugby brand into Asia.

“Our long-standing ties with Nagasaki, which will host the Scotland team ahead of the World Cup, have already been beneficial and in 2016 we signed a Partnership Agreement with the city to develop our business and rugby interests.

“Scotland played the first Tier 1 rugby match ever hosted in Singapore against Italy to kick-off Scotland’s 2017 summer tour which raised further our profile in Asia and demonstrated Scottish Rugby’s desire to be innovative and at the forefront of new initiatives.

“Scottish Rugby is in a good space just now. We need to be creative to combat the challenges ahead while also driving forward our ambitious modernisation and commercial strategies, including developing strong foot-holds in key markets such as the USA, Japan and Asia.”

McKay’s top tip for exporters: “Consult with those already operating in those markets and take time to understand the cultural background of your own business area. Be ambitious and patient.”

Scottish Rugby (formerly known as the Scottish Football Union) was founded in 1873 following a meeting between eight clubs in Glasgow.

Based at Edinburgh’s BT Murrayfield Stadium, the governing body develops and funds programmes to help grow the game at club and school level to encourage more players, both male and female, to get into rugby.

And it isn’t just in the home nation where Scottish Rugby is helping promote the game either. The body now works with organisations across the globe to promote the Scottish Rugby brand overseas, which is seeing more fans than ever before follow rugby in Scotland.

Dominic McKay, COO, explains: “We aim to do whatever it takes to grow the game and help it flourish in a manner that fits our values. We also manage Scotland's international rugby teams at every age group level and own and run the country’s two professional clubs, Edinburgh Rugby and Glasgow Warriors.

“We, in many respects, are the national flag carriers for Scotland as our teams are travelling to play most weeks of the year, be that Glasgow Warriors, Edinburgh Rugby, Scotland, Scotland 7s or Scotland Women as they compete on the European and World stage.

“Scottish rugby sides have been playing overseas since the 19th century from the first Scotland away matches against England in 1872 and Ireland in Belfast in 1877. We have been exporting our brand ever since!”

One of the key aims of Scottish Rugby is to present a positive vision of Scotland through the sport and this aim has been boosted by the excellent performances of both its domestic and nation sides in recent years. This has helped drive overseas sales of merchandise, raise brand awareness and secure sponsorships.

As far as McKay is concerned, this is an excellent example of how using the Scottish brand can help organisations export their products and services overseas. He adds: “Our rise to 5th in the World Rankings has generated additional interest and this can be seen in areas such as shirt sales which have risen by 20% over the past four years.

“Television coverage of the 2017 RBS 6 Nations matches featuring Scotland was also transmitted to 181 territories worldwide reaching an audience of 23.2million, while the recent Autumn Test series was broadcast to countries as diverse as Argentina, Singapore, Nigeria, UAE and New Zealand.

“We were also fully involved in the development of World Rugby’s new global season and negotiated the return of Scotland to playing summer test-match series against the best teams in the southern hemisphere from 2020.

“We have more than 2,100 Scotland Supporters Club members from 22 countries all around the world, a 61% increase on last year.”

So, after a stellar year both on the pitch and off it, what next for Scottish Rugby? McKay said: “Globalising our brand to attract overseas investment and growing our fan base have always been critical to our business objectives.

“Rugby is a global sport and we are the forefront of its global development. We have recently spent time strengthening ties in the US, Japan and Singapore markets. The inclusion of South African teams in the Guinness PRO14 league has taken Glasgow Warriors and Edinburgh Rugby into a brand new market this season alone.

“The 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan offers an unprecedented opportunity to take the Scottish Rugby brand into Asia.

“Our long-standing ties with Nagasaki, which will host the Scotland team ahead of the World Cup, have already been beneficial and in 2016 we signed a Partnership Agreement with the city to develop our business and rugby interests.

“Scotland played the first Tier 1 rugby match ever hosted in Singapore against Italy to kick-off Scotland’s 2017 summer tour which raised further our profile in Asia and demonstrated Scottish Rugby’s desire to be innovative and at the forefront of new initiatives.

“Scottish Rugby is in a good space just now. We need to be creative to combat the challenges ahead while also driving forward our ambitious modernisation and commercial strategies, including developing strong foot-holds in key markets such as the USA, Japan and Asia.”

McKay’s top tip for exporters: “Consult with those already operating in those markets and take time to understand the cultural background of your own business area. Be ambitious and patient.”